This invention relates to portable disc holders of the type which are typically used to hold or contain compact discs, or CD""s as they are more familiarly known.
Compact disc holders fall generally into two types, the first being in the form of a rectangular plastics box which includes a hinged lid or front cover over a rectangular housing including a back cover for containing the disc. The xe2x80x9cheightxe2x80x9d of the disc holder relative to the length of the hinge is slightly in excess of the diameter of the disc, whereas the xe2x80x9cwidthxe2x80x9d of the disc holder is greater, as it must include the width of the hinge itself. Although these kinds of disc holder are in common use and efficiently protect compact discs from damage, nevertheless they are unsuitable for transporting such discs by post as they are generally heavy and can become broken during transport.
The second type of portable disc holders available are typically made from cardboard, as is shown in patent number GB2319242B, and include a back cover onto which are bonded sheets of shaped cardboard having a central aperture corresponding generally to the external diameter of the disc to be held. A front cover is hingedly connected to the back cover to protect the otherwise exposed face of the disc. This type of disc holder is generally fighter than a plastics one and therefore is preferable for transportation by post, but a major disadvartage arises by the fact that, in order to protect all edges of the disc from accidental damage, the overall xe2x80x9cheightxe2x80x9d of the holder is greater such that the disc holder is essentially square, as opposed to being rectangular as in the plastics version. This means, in turn, that such relatively lightweight compact disc holders cannot fit into standard sized compact disc storage facilities and for this reason they are generally only used for demonstration discs sent by post or included with magazines etc., rather than being used as a substitute for the more traditional plastics holder commonly used to house all kinds of compact discs, including those for playing computer games.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a lightweight portable disc holder in the aforementioned disadvantages are obviated.
According to the invention there is provided a portable disc holder, the holder comprising or including a frame member adapted to circumferentially surround a disc at the disc""s edges and being at least partially in contact therewith to restrain planar movement of the disc when held in the frame, the frame member including integral flange means into which at least part of an outer edge of the disc can be inserted preventing or inhibiting planar movement of the disc in that region, and remote from the flange means on a generally opposite portion of the frame an integral resiliently moveable flange means adapted to restrain planar movement of an adjacent edge portion of the disc when the disc is mounted in the frame, the resiliently moveable flange means permitting entry of that portion of the disc into the frame following resilient deformation of the flange.
Conveniently, the flange means remote from the resiliently moveable flange means is also resiliently moveable, and each comprise an integrally formed inwardly facing flange relative to the frame, behind which is a slot to permit each flange to be pushed radially outwardly relative to the orientation of a disc to be stored to permit entry of the disc into the frame. Alternatively, the resiliently moveable flange means may be arranged to move angularly relative to the frame member to permit entry or removal of the disc.
Conveniently, the frame member has a back cover and a hinged front cover, which hinged front cover may have a projection at or near a leading edge thereof cooperable with a correspondingly shaped recess in the frame such that the front cover can be closed by a snap fit and released in the same way.
In an alternative embodiment of the invention, the disc holder is provided with a separate sleeve into which the disc holder and a disc may be inserted.